Ajay Goel, Ph.D., AGAF

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Ajay Goel CV Bio Profile
Professor And Chair, Department Of Molecular Diagnostics And Experimental Therapeutics
Research Area
Gastrointestinal Cancers
Appointments
Director, Biotech Innovations
Associate Director Of Basic Science, Comprehensive Cancer Center
Dynamic and passionate — with a formidable record of patented innovations in cancer care — Ajay Goel, Ph.D., AGAF, is committed to developing better methods for the early detection and precision treatment of cancer. He joined City of Hope in June 2019 as founding chair of the new Department of Molecular Diagnostics and Experimental Therapeutics and founding director of Biotech Innovations at Beckman Research Institute. Dr. Goel is also the associate director of basic science for the comprehensive cancer center and is a fellow of the American Gastroenterology Association.
 
“City of Hope has a wonderful track record of moving discoveries from bench to clinic,” he said. “And by founding this new department, which will add a layer of earlier noninvasive diagnostics, we will hopefully make a difference in this war on cancer.”
 
A noted expert in gastrointestinal and other cancers, Goel is currently developing early-detection blood tests for colon, pancreatic and ovarian cancers — as well as a test for pancreatic cancer that can detect the disease seven years earlier than is now possible. Within the next few years, these tests are expected to become a simple and affordable part of everyone’s annual health physical, just like tests for diabetes or cholesterol.
 
He is also working with genomic-based precision oncology to provide answers to the question: Why do therapies work with some good candidates and not with others.
 
Goel was born in India, received his Ph.D. in biophysics from Punjab University, completed his postgraduate work at the University of California San Diego, and went on to a noteworthy 16-year career at Baylor Scott & White Research Institute in Texas. He has authored more than 300 articles in peer-reviewed international journals and holds more than 30 advanced genomic and transcriptomic international patents .
 
One surprising fact about Goel: In addition to his technological expertise, he finds wisdom in the ancient Indian medical system Ayurveda, which has given us such natural therapies as the proven anti-inflammatory in turmeric. Prevention, he believes, is the best medicine.
 
Location
Education & Experience
Degrees

  • 1991-1996, Ph.D., Biophysics, Panjab University, Chandigarh, India

  • 1988-1990, M.S. (Honors), Biophysics, Panjab University, Chandigarh, India

  • 1985-1988, B.S. (Honors), Biophysics, Panjab University, Chandigarh, India

Fellowship

  • 1998-present, AGAF - Fellow, American Gastroenterology Association

Professional Experience

  • 2020-present, Associate Director of Basic Science, Comprehensive Cancer Center, City of Hope, Duarte, CA

  • 2019-present, Professor and Chair, Department of Molecular Diagnostics and Experimental Therapeutics, City of Hope, Duarte, CA

  • 2016-2019, Michael A Ramsay Chair in Cancer Genomics, Baylor Scott & White Healthcare

  • 2015-2019, Adjunct Distinguished Professor, School of Biomedical Sciences at Curtin University, Perth, Australia

  • 2015-2019, Adjunct Professor, Baylor University Institute for Biomedical Studies, Baylor University, Waco, TX

  • 2014-2019, Director, Center for Translational Genomics and Oncology, Baylor Scott & White Research Institute and Charles A Sammons Cancer Center, Baylor University Medical Center, Dallas, TX

  • 2012-2019, Director, Center for Gastrointestinal Research, Baylor Scott & White Research Institute and Charles A Sammons Cancer Center, Baylor University Medical Center, Dallas, TX

  • 2005-2019, Investigator/Professor, Baylor Research Institute, Baylor University Medical Center, Dallas, TX

  • 2011-2014, Director, Epigenetics and Cancer Prevention Research, Baylor Research Institute, Baylor University Medical Center, Dallas, TX

  • 2003-2005, Associate Investigator (equivalent to Associate Professor), Baylor Research Institute, Baylor University Medical Center, Dallas, TX

  • 2001-2003, Assistant Project Scientist, Department of Medicine and Cancer Center, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California

Awards & Memberships

Awards

  • 2022, Top cited article in 2021, Scientific Reports
  • 2021, Elected nominating committee member, American Gastroenterological Association (AGA)
  • 2020, Board of directors nominee, Gastric Cancer Foundation
  • 2020, Erudite Scholar award, Kerala State Higher Education Council, Government of India
  • 2020, R. Robert & Sally Funderberg Research award, AGA
  • 2019, Ludwig Cancer Research-Hilton Foundation Partnership award
  • 2019, Top cited article in 2018, Scientific Reports
  • 2019, Best of the Journal award, American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) for the Top cited article in 2017, Clinical Cancer Research
  • 2018, Best poster award, annual Baylor-TGen alliance meeting
  • 2018, Podium presentation, AACR 2018 annual meeting
  • 2018, Top Reviewer award, Gastroenterology journal

 

  • 2018, Four oral presentations, including at AGA's Plenary Topic Forum, Digestive Disease Week (DDW)
  • 2018, Poster of Distinction award, AGA
  • 2018, Selected for oral presentation, AACR 2018 annual meeting
  • 2017, National Cancer Institute Pancreatic Cancer Detection Consortium U01 grant award
  • 2017, Three oral presentations, AGA's Plenary Topic Forum, DDW
  • 2017, Poster of Distinction award, AGA
  • 2016, Selected into the AACR Basic Cancer Research Fellowships Scientific Review Award Committee
  • 2016, Poster of Distinction award, AGA
  • 2016, Michael A. Ramsay Chair in Translational Genomics and Oncology
  • 2016, Poster of Distinction awards at the annual AGA/DDW meetings in San Diego, CA

Memberships

  • 2022-present, Member, European Society of Medical Oncology
  • 2022-present, Member, American Pancreatic Association
  • 2018-present, Member, Early Detection Research Network
  • 2017-present,     Member, Pancreatic Cancer Detection Consortium
  • 2017-present, Member, American Society of Clinical Oncology
  • 2017-present, Member, Cancer Epigenetics Society
  • 1998-present, Member, American Association for Cancer Research
  • 1998-present, Member and Fellow, American Gastroenterology Association
  • 1993-present, Member, Electron Microscopy Society of India
  • 1989-present, Lifetime Member, Society of Biophysicists of India
  • 1989-present, Member, Association of Medical Physicists of India
  • 1994-1996, Member, Microscopy Society of America
Publications
  • Nakamura K and Goel A (2023). Re: The Diagnostic Specificity in Blood-based miRNA Signatures Should be Fully Evaluated. Gastroenterology, (In Review).
  • Li L, Goel A*, and Wang X (2022). Novel paradigms of mitochondrial biology and function: Potential clinical significance in the era of precision medicine. Cell Biology and Toxicology, 38(3): 371-375. PMID: 35618927 (*Co-corresponding author).
  • Goel A (2022). The era of biomarkers and precision medicine in colorectal cancer: an interview with Ajay Goel. Epigenomics, 14(6): 345-349. PMID: 35081730.
  • Moloudizargari M, Rahmani J, Asghari MH, and Goel A (2022). The prognostic role of miR-31 in colorectal cancer. The results of a meta-analysis of 4720 patients. Epigenomics, 14(2):101-112. PMID: 34894715.
  • Toden S and Goel A (2022). Non-coding RNAs as liquid biopsy biomarkers in cancer. British Journal of Cancer, 126(3): 351-360. PMID: 35013579.
  • Wada Y, Zhu Z, and Goel A (2022). Author reply to the article entitled Noninvasive identification of lymph node metastasis in T1 colorectal cancer by a transcriptomic panel based on liquid biopsy assay: additional analytical strategies are needed. Gastroenterology, 162(1):348-349. PMID: 34529991.
  • Renwick N, El-Osta A, Salamon, I, Broseghini E, Ferracin M, Poliseno L, Jankauskas SS, Santulli G, Xiao H, Shiu PKT, Roy S and Goel A (2021). The non-coding RNA journal club: Highlights on recent papers-9. Non-coding RNA, 7(3):58. PMID: 34564320. PMCID: PMC8482151.
  • Moloudizargari M, Asghari MH and Goel A (2021). The therapeutic triad of extracellular vesicles: As drug targets, as drugs, and as drug carriers. Biochemical Pharmacology, 192:114714. PMID: 34222957.
  • Chen Y, Wu T, Zhu Z, Han G, Huang H, Zhang L, Goel A, Yang M and Wang X (2021). An integrated workflow for biomarker development using microRNAs in extracellular vesicles for cancer precision medicine. Seminars in Cancer Biology, 74:134-155. PMID: 33766650.
  • Lorzadeh A, Romero-Wolf M, Goel A and Jadhav U (2021). Epigenetic regulation of intestinal and stem cells: A balancing act of DNA and histone methylation. Gastroenterology, 160(7):2267-2282. PMID: 33775639. PMCID: PMC8169626.
  • Ming H, Li B, Goel A* and Huang C (2021). Long non-coding RNAs and cancer metastasis: molecular basis and therapeutic implications. BBA Reviews on Cancer, 1875(2):188519. PMID: 33548345.
  • Yang Y, Yan X, Li X, Ma Y and Goel A (2021). Long non-coding RNAs in colorectal cancer: Novel oncogenic mechanisms and promising clinical applications. Cancer Letters, 504:67-80. PMID: 33577977. PMCID: PMC9715275.
  • Zhao Y, Wang C, and Goel A (2021). Role of gut microbiota in epigenetic regulation of colorectal cancer. BBA Reviews on Cancer, 1875(1): 188490. PMID: 33321173. PMCID: PMC7856101.
  • Toden S, Zumwalt T and Goel A (2021). Non-coding RNAs and potential therapeutic targeting in cancer. BBA Reviews on Cancer, 1875(1): 188491. PMID: 33316377. PMCID: PMC7856203.
  • Sharma GG, Okada Y, Von Hoff D and Goel A (2021). Non-coding RNA biomarkers in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma. Seminars in Cancer Biology, 75:153-168.PMID: 33049362. PMCID: PMC8035348.
  • Boland CR, Goel A, and Patel S (2020). The genetic and epigenetic landscape of early-onset colorectal cancer. Colorectal Cancer, 9(3): https://doi.org/10.2217/crc-2020-0005
  • Crichton DJ, Altinok A, Amos C, Anton K, Cinquini L, Colbert M, Feng Z, Goel A, Kelly S, Kincaid S, Liu D, Lomeyda S, Mahabal A, Patriotis C and Srivastava S (2020). Cancer biomarkers and big data: A planetary science approach. Cancer Cell, 38(6): 757-760. PMID: 32976775.
  • Weng W and Goel A (2020). Curcumin and colorectal cancer: An update and current perspective on this natural medicine. Seminars in Cancer Biology, S1044-579X(20)30044-4. PMID: 32088363. PMCID: PMC7438305.
  • Cui XL, Nie J, Ku J, Dougherty U, West-Szymanski DC, Collin F, Ellison CK, Sieh L, Ning Y, Deng Z, Zhao CWT, Bergamaschi A, Pekow J, Wei J, Beadell AV, Zhang Z, Sharma G, Talwar R, Arensdorf P, Karpus J, Goel A, Bissonnette M, Zhang W, Levy S, He C (2020). A human tissue map of 5-hydroxymethylcytosines exhibits tissue specificity through gene and enhancer modulation. Nature Communications, 11(1): 6161. PMID: 33268789. PMCID: PMC7710742
  • Lane JS, Cridebring D, Von Hoff DD and Goel A (2020). Extracellular vesicles in diagnosis and treatment of pancreatic cancer: Current state and future perspectives. Cancers, 12(6): e1530. PMID: 32532129. PMCID: PMC7352217.

To view more of Ajay Goel's PubMed publications, please click here.